Fluorescent tubes, or fluorescent lamps, e.g. low pressure mercury-vapor gas-discharge lamps that utilize fluorescence in order to produce visible light, are used in a variety of lighting applications and are usually capable of providing longer lifetime and increased luminous efficiency as compared to, e.g., incandescent lamps. However, when seeking to reduce power consumption of light sources or luminaries, it is desirable to replace conventional light tubes with more energy usage efficient alternatives. One such alternative is light-emitting diode (LED) tubular light sources or lamps, which may have a plurality of LEDs arranged on a strip inside a tube similar to the tube of a fluorescent tube or lamp. Such LED tubular light sources may also be referred to as retrofit tubes.
In such retrofit tubes, as well as in substantially all electrical devices such as high-power semiconductor devices, high-power lasers, microprocessors and/or LEDs, operation is often associated with generation of heat. The heat is a by-product that may have a detrimental effect on performance and lifetime of the devices. Effective cooling is therefore desired or even required in many applications, and thermal performance of the devices, e.g. the capacity and/or efficiency of transferring or dissipating heat away from the devices, is in general an important design parameter. US2012/0069556 A1 discloses an illumination module that includes at least one flexible carrier for a plurality of heat sources, including light sources, wherein the carrier is provided for being bent over at least part of its width.